A teenager who survived December's tsunami has been rescued by police from a remote island on India's Andaman and Nicobar archipelago.

Eighteen-year-old Jessy is said to have lived on wild fruit for 45 days.

She was found on Wednesday close to the site where nine survivors of the tsunami were found last week.

More than 2,000 people are confirmed dead on the island chain with another 1,000 still missing, including Jessy's husband and child.

Scarred

Jessy is said to belong to the Nicobarese tribe and was rescued from the Pillowpanja islands in the south of the archipelago.

She told police she does not think her husband and one-year-old child are still alive.

"Jessy took to the forests when the waves came but by the time she came out after several days, the rest of the population had been either evacuated to Campbell Bay or swept away by the waves," Shaukat Aziz, Campbell Bay police chief, told AFP.

The teenager is now receiving medical attention.

"She has lost weight and her body is swollen and scarred by mosquito bites," Mr Aziz said.